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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27497329">Here With You</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Royalravens/pseuds/Royalravens'>Royalravens</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Teen Wolf (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Episode: s06e10 Riders on the Storm, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Pre-Slash, morgue scene</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-11-10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-08 02:24:59</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>2,650</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27497329</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Royalravens/pseuds/Royalravens</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Theo and Liam hide in a morgue drawer. It goes about as well as would be expected.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Liam Dunbar/Theo Raeken</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>135</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Here With You</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Heya folks! Long time no see! </p><p>First off the obligatory 'not my characters, Jeff Davis's Teen Wolf blablabla'. </p><p>I saw someone on the <a href="https://officialthiamlibrary.tumblr.com/post/633590640745349120/hey-there-is-there-by-any-chance-a-fanfiction">@officialthiamlibrary</a> on Tumblr asking for a fic where Theo and Liam hide in the morgue drawers in 'Riders of the Storm', and that's what I've been up to the past three days. Oh well. </p><p>Hope y'all enjoy :)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">Theo’s heart was nearly pounding out of his chest as Liam shoved the examination table against the doors of the morgue. The threatening sound of sirens in the background and the eerily familiar pungent smell of death and disinfectant blurred his vision.</p><p class="p1"><em>Of course they would end up in here</em>, Theo thought to himself, because someone out there clearly thought he didn’t deserve a break, ever. Beacon Hills Memorial Hospital was a really big place, and Theo knew this all too well because he’d seen every inch of it on his many attempts to escape, and still, of all the goddamned places in this gigantic hospital, Liam just had to pick <em>this</em> <em>particular</em> room for them to hide in.</p><p class="p1">“<em>This</em> is your brilliant idea? To barricade ourselves in the morgue?” Theo all but growled, his head reeling the panic he was desperately trying to suppress. Liam couldn’t know. He couldn’t see how weak, how <em>useless</em> Theo actually was. He’d be left behind for sure, or worse.</p><p class="p1">Liam didn’t even look at him as he turned around and stalked towards the wall of drawers. “The Ghost Riders go after the living, so we hide with the dead,” he said as if that was supposed to make any sense at all. He opened one of the doors, revealing the feet of a young woman with painted red toenails. Theo was going to be sick. Liam, obviously a bit disturbed as well, closed the door again and opened another. This one was occupied as well.</p><p class="p1">Then it dawned on Theo what the beta was doing, and this time he actively had to prevent himself from gagging.</p><p class="p1">“I’m not getting in one of those,” Theo forced out, but the beta ignored him and opened the next one. This one was finally empty, and Liam turned around to signal for Theo to get in.</p><p class="p1">Theo backed up, shaking his head. “You should’ve left me in the holding cell.”</p><p class="p1">The beta sighed angrily. “I should’ve left you in the ground.”</p><p class="p1">That stung. Really, really bad. Theo was fairly certain that Liam didn’t believe at all what he was saying, or at least he wouldn’t have said it if he knew what had happened to him while he was down there.</p><p class="p1">Still, the remark made Theo’s blood boil. “Oh, really?”</p><p class="p1">“Yeah. Really,” Liam hissed, “Now get <em>in</em> before they find us!”</p><p class="p1">“What do you think I was doing down there?” Theo said, ignoring the beta’s demand. He pointedly looked Liam in the eye, to avoid looking at the empty drawer. “Just hanging out with my dead sister? Having a good time catching up on childhood memories?”</p><p class="p1">The tension in the air was so thick at this point it could be cut with a knife. It was either that, or the smell was <em>really </em>starting to mess with Theo’s head.</p><p class="p1">Liam took a step towards Theo. “I think you were rotting down there,” he said, and Theo would’ve thought Liam was calm if it hadn’t been for the enraged look in his eyes.</p><p class="p1">Theo turned around to hide his expression, no longer able to control it. “Liam finally gets one thing right.”</p><p class="p1">He heard Liam approach him from behind. “I also think whatever happened to you, you deserved it.”</p><p class="p1">And that was the last straw. His fangs out and eyes flashing yellow, Theo turned around and got right in Liam’s face. “Is that right?”</p><p class="p1">But Liam stood his ground. “When the ghost riders find us, I’m not gonna do anything for you. I’m not gonna help you, I’m not gonna save you. I’m gonna do <em>exactly</em> what you would do to me. I’m gonna use you as bait.”</p><p class="p1">Maybe he didn’t need Tara to rip his heart out after all. What could he even say to that? He had said exactly the same thing just ten minutes earlier. <em>Besides, he’s right</em>, a helpful voice in the back of his mind supplied, <em>you did deserve it</em>. <em>You tried to kill him and everyone he cared about</em>. <em>What were they supposed to do</em>?</p><p class="p1">The silence that followed was unbearable. They were just staring at each other as if they were daring each other to speak up next. The faint light that came through the windows of the morgue framed the beta’s face in such a strange way, it was almost enchanting, and Theo almost forgot that he was mad at Liam.</p><p class="p1">But then something occurred to him; it wasn’t supposed to be this silent. He looked away from Liam and stared at the barricaded doors. “You still hear the ambulance?” </p><p class="p1">Liam eyed him stoically, obviously not understanding what Theo was saying for some reason, despite the fact that Theo could not have been any clearer about it.</p><p class="p1">“The siren, can you still hear it?” He snapped, his anger making way for panic again. Liam slowly shook his head, understanding finally dawning on his face. “They’re here.”</p><p class="p1">For a couple of moments, they stayed completely still to listen intently for any sign of Ghost Rider presence, until the loud sound of a nearby door being slammed open seemed to snap Liam out of it. A look of determination flickered across the betas face, and before Theo could do anything to stop him, Liam grabbed him by the arm and dragged him to the morgue drawer.</p><p class="p1">Theo frantically ripped his arm out of Liam’s grasp. “You can’t make me.”</p><p class="p1">“It’s crawling with Ghost Riders out there. You hear them too, right? We won’t make it when there’s this many, and if we want to give Scott <em>any</em> chance, we have to hide.”</p><p class="p1">Another loud bang. A gunshot this time. Theo whirled his head around to look back at the doors, through which he could now vaguely make out the shadow of a figure on the wall outside. He looked back at Liam.</p><p class="p1">“Why don’t you get in yourself then? You made it abundantly clear that I’m not worth saving anyway!”</p><p class="p1">Theo could pinpoint the exact moment when Liam heard the Ghost Rider in the hallway. The beta immediately grabbed Theo by his shirt and whispered icily, “Get in. <em>Now</em>.”</p><p class="p1">And so he did, even though he didn’t understand at all why Liam couldn’t just leave him, especially after all the horrible things he’d said to him a couple of minutes before. Theo couldn’t think about it for long, because he was currently climbing in the <em>one place</em> he had never wanted to end up in ever again. His breathing was already getting heavier as he lied down on his back on the metal bottom, with his feet almost touching the back of the drawer.</p><p class="p1">Liam soon followed, and Theo shifted awkwardly so Liam could lie next to him instead of on top of him. That didn’t work out quite as well as he’d perhaps hoped, because the drawer was still made for one person, so with Liam lying on his stomach to Theo’s left, they were tightly pressed together at their sides.</p><p class="p1">His face flushed as he became hyper-aware of the places their bodies touched, and he would’ve been embarrassed or even mortified about it, had it happened at literally any other moment. Besides, Liam wasn’t even looking at him. Instead, he was grabbing for the metal door of the drawer to close it.</p><p class="p1">The Ghost Rider they’d heard earlier slammed the doors to the morgue wide open, sending the tables they’d used to block off the doors flying through the room, right as Liam shut the metal door and the darkness Theo knew too well engulfed them both.</p><p class="p1">Even with how bad the smell was out there in the morgue, the smell was way worse in here, he now remembered. The darkness sent him spiralling back down to hell, and he could swear he could hear Tara softly whispering his name. Completely overwhelmed, he closed his eyes. <em>You’re safe. She’s not here</em>, He kept saying over and over again to himself.<em> You’re okay. Your heart is still inside your chest. Don’t throw up. Breathe normally.</em></p><p class="p1">“Theo, it’s going to hear you,” Liam anxiously whispered, so quietly Theo barely heard him over the blood rushing in his ears.</p><p class="p1">But Theo couldn’t calm down. He couldn’t be less concerned with the Ghost Riders right now, even though he was somewhat aware of the footsteps that were ominously moving through the room towards them, it seemed. He wasn’t scared of the Ghost Riders or the Wild Hunt. Sure, they would take him, bring him into the Hunt- but it couldn’t be any worse than what he’d endured already, could it? At least he would know he would never see <em>her</em> again…</p><p class="p1">Then again, that would mean he’d have to take Liam with him, and he would never endanger Liam like that. Not again, anyway.</p><p class="p1">By now, Theo was almost sure he was about to pass out. His entire body was tense, his eyes clenched shut, and he was breathing like he was running for his life.</p><p class="p1"><em>Just like all those times that you ran from her</em>, the voice in the back of his mind said.</p><p class="p1">Theo had to get out. He had to run. He was wasting time, staying in here, he knew it wouldn’t work, that she was coming to get him, and he deserved what she was going to do, just like Liam had said-</p><p class="p1">A hand suddenly covered his mouth. He instantly grabbed a hold of the arm that was attached to it.</p><p class="p1">“You’re okay,” he vaguely heard Liam whisper, and then, “Just- please, we’re almost through this.” Tears had started to stream down his face by now. “Breathe, she’s not here.”</p><p class="p1">Wasn’t she? Theo wasn’t so sure anymore. And even if she wasn’t, they were probably going to send him back down after this was all over. Theo wasn’t stupid, the sword being broken couldn’t be the only way to get him down there. And if he wasn’t sent back, he would eventually get there anyway when he died a (probably) slow and painful death. And then she was going to take his heart, again, and again, and again, and-</p><p class="p1"><em>“I’m here with you, Theo.</em>”</p><p class="p1">… But what if she wasn’t?</p><p class="p1">Maybe Scott’s pack had good intentions after all; maybe, if they knew what had happened there, they wouldn’t be so quick to get rid of him again. After all, they hadn’t <em>known</em> where he’d ended up. Maybe they would even try to help him.</p><p class="p1">“That’s it,” Liam whispered, still barely audible, stroking his hair with his other hand to try and soothe him even further, “you’re doing great.”</p><p class="p1">The footsteps were fading away again, and then the doors opened and closed.</p><p class="p1">He took a deep breath and tried to focus on Liam’s scent instead of the smell of the morgue. He leaned into the beta’s touch and managed to not even be embarrassed about it. Eventually, his breathing started to even out, and he took one last shuddering breath before opening his eyes.</p><p class="p1">Liam was right there above him but a little bit to the left, so he had to turn his head slightly to make eye contact. The beta looked more concerned and, to Theo’s surprise, guilty, then he’d ever seen him before. He quickly looked away to the side to avoid the two yellow eyes that were staring at him in the darkness. The warm hand over his mouth moved to his cheek. Liam tried in vain to wipe the tears from Theo’s face, as they were still coming in a steady stream.</p><p class="p1">“I- I-” Theo stammered, before letting out a quiet sob, “I’m- so <em>fucking</em> sorry, Liam, for- for everything.”</p><p class="p1">And to Theo’s surprise, he really meant what he said. He <em>was</em> sorry. Every decision he’d made from the second he’d stepped back into Beacon Hills had been the wrong one, and he’d finally begun to realise it.</p><p class="p1">The beta nodded but otherwise didn’t immediately respond. Theo turned his eyes back to look Liam in the eyes again, still expecting to see a sign of disapproval or anger on the beta’s face, but not finding it anywhere. After a couple of moments, Liam cleared his throat, and asked, “What happened? Like, down there?” Theo swallowed. He hadn’t expected that question already.</p><p class="p1">He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times as he was trying to decide what to say. “I would wake up in here,” he began as he felt more and more tears slide down his cheeks. “and I would- get out. Tara-” He squeezed his eyes shut for a second, trying to force the images of his sister down. Liam’s hand was still warm on his cheek. “She would rip open my chest, to- to take my heart. And then I woke up here again. It was just- her killing me, over and over again, for months, maybe? I don’t even know how long I was down there.”</p><p class="p1">Liam was silent. Theo couldn’t hold it against him. He wouldn’t know what to say to that either.</p><p class="p1">They just lied there, pressed together, neither of them knowing what to say. It was kind of comfortable, in a way. Theo almost forgot where he was. Almost.</p><p class="p1">Then Liam shifted. The hand on Theo’s cheek went away, and he immediately missed it.</p><p class="p1">The beta opened the small metal door, and light flooded back into the drawer. No sign of any of the Ghost Riders in the morgue, nor anywhere on the floor they were on as far as Theo could hear.Liam clumsily stumbled out, then turned around to help Theo climb out too.</p><p class="p1">Theo breathed a sigh of relief as his feet touched the ground and he was standing on his legs again. He leaned back against the wall with the drawers. Fuck, he was tired. Liam didn’t move away from him but instead cupped Theo’s face with his hands. Theo startled a little, but Liam didn’t seem fazed and neither moved away.</p><p class="p1">“I’m sorry, too,” he said softly, “We never should’ve just left you there, even though we didn’t know what was happening to you. I hope- I hope you can forgive me.”</p><p class="p1">Theo stared at Liam, tears welling up in his eyes again, but he blinked them away this time. “It’s not your fault,” he breathed, not trying to get caught up in how close they were, “It was probably the last thing you had to worry about, especially after everything I did to you.”</p><p class="p1">Liam looked at him incredulously, like he was trying to comprehend this new version of Theo he’d never seen before. New, vulnerable, <em>honest</em>. Were they getting closer? Theo was almost certain that they were. But who the one moving forward was, he didn’t know. He was too caught up in the beta’s eyes, so overwhelmingly blue in his human form. Closer, closer.</p><p class="p1">The slam of a door sounded nearby and the moment was gone. They jumped apart, immediately ready to attack any potential threat.</p><p class="p1">Liam cleared his throat, seemingly a bit embarrassed. “We should- we should head out there, try to pick off a few now that there aren't as many.”</p><p class="p1">Theo laughed, but it felt hollow. He could hear a Ghost Rider approaching. “If it gets me out of here, gladly.”</p><p class="p1">Liam was already looking around, probably for a way out, or something to fight back with when he stopped to look at one of the examination tables on wheels. He turned around to face Theo. “I have an idea,” he said, smiling and eyes shining bright.</p><p class="p1">After everything that just happened, Theo felt all warm and fuzzy inside as he looked at Liam, and that’s when he realised something that had been staring him quite literally in the face from the moment he’d crawled out of Tara’s hell.</p><p class="p1">Theo sighed before getting ready to slam the table through the doors to immobilise the Ghost Rider. He wasn’t getting a break anytime soon by the looks of it.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Come cry with me on tumblr: <a href="https://royalravens.tumblr.com/">Royalravens</a></p><p>Please leave a comment, I'd really appreciate it!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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